2012 Draft Profile - Draymond Green

Draymond capped off a fantastic 4-year career at Michigan State by being named an AP-1st team All-American and the NABC National Player of the Year. Draymond is also one of three players to record two career triple-doubles in NCAA tournament history.

Draymond’s skill set defines the term “tweener” as he lacks the ideal size to play power forward and the quickness as well as athleticism to play on the wing. Listed at 6’7”, he played as a point forward in Michigan State’s offense and has shown improvement as a wing-player. Regardless of what position Draymond plays in the NBA, he does several things very well. During the 2011-2012 season, Draymond led his team in points per game (16.2), rebounds per game (10.6), and steals (1.5). He was also just percentage points off of leading his team in blocks and assists. While doing multiple things well can be considered an advantage, it can also be considered a disadvantage because he does not do anything great.

Offensively, Draymond needs to improve his shot and efficiency to succeed at the next level. He shoots a solid 72.3% from the free-throw line. He has already shown improvement in his shot from his freshman year. As a freshman, he shot 61.5% from the free-throw line. However, his release is still slightly slow and he can improve his footwork as a spot-up shooter. Draymond lacks an explosive first step when attacking the basketball but makes up for it by using his tremendous strength to finish through contact. As a forward, he shows tremendous court vision and passing-ability, averaging 3.8 assists per game, good for 8th in the Big Ten Conference.

In the post, Draymond uses his superior strength to gain excellent position and score over his opponents. Although he demonstrates the ability to score with his back-to-the basket, his post game is not fundamentally ready for the NBA. He does not have a go-to move in the post. He also lacks length, thus he will have trouble to shoot over the top of the athletically superior players in the NBA.

Draymond overcomes a lack of size to average 10.6 rebounds per game. He overcomes his lack of size by using a high basketball IQ and superb positioning after the shot is released. He lacks quickness to guard players on the perimeter. Draymond has shown improvement with his fouls. During his junior season he averaged 3.4 fouls per game while fouling out in 6 games. Draymond was first in the conference in foul outs and 17th in the nation. On the contrary, during the 2011-2012 season, Draymond fouled out of only 1 game and recorded 4 fouls nine times.

The greatest attribute of Draymond is his intangibles. He is a passionate, vocal floor leader on the basketball court. He also has a tremendous work ethic. This work ethic is demonstrated by improvement in his year-to-year statistics. These intangibles might allow him to succeed as a role player in the NBA.Player profile submitted by: Austin Rahmin

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